Officials released two endangered West Indian manatees into Biscayne Bay on
February 5, 2002 after the manatees
spent nine months at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. The manatees were brought
to the zoo March 6, 2001 as part
of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service's rehabilitation and recovery program.
The two were then sent to SeaWorld
Orlando on December 13, 2001. They had come to Columbus via SeaWorld, one
of seven critical care facilities for
manatees in Florida.
'Brooks' was found in April 1999 near docks about 50 miles south of Daytona
Beach, Fla. When the two-yearold
orphaned calf arrived at the Zoo, he was 7 feet long and weighed 550 pounds.
He is now 8 feet, 6 inches long and
weighs more than 800 pounds.
'Trident,' a three-year-old male, was found in February 2000 about 60 miles
north of Palm Beach, Fla. He was
suffering from frostbite because he didn't migrate to warmer waters. Trident
was also 7 feet long when he arrived
and weighed 600 pounds. He is now more than 7 feet, 6 inches long and weighs
more than 800 pounds.
It is the second time the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium has returned manatees
to the wild. In February 2000,
'Comet,' an orphaned manatee, was released at Blue Springs State Park in Florida.
[Source: Associated Press]